Turn2us fundraiser most senior cyclist finisher
On Saturday night, two people became cycling heroes for Turn2us when they successfully completed Nightrider – the exciting 60K/100K moonlit cycle ride past London’s iconic landmarks.
Geoffrey Roper
Most notably, we are incredibly proud of Geoffrey Roper - a compliance analyst from the Turn2us finance team - was at age 75 he was the event’s most senior finisher!
Geoffrey lives in London with his wife and cycles to work regularly. He’s a retired clergyman but at 75, he’s not at all retired and has a very active life, including working for Turn2us as a compliance analyst. Being a keen cyclist he was interested in our cycle events, and though he admitted that he hasn’t always found fundraising very easy he has taken it in his stride - in just one week he’s raised nearly £200.
On the night of the Nightrider event, Geoffrey found the wind chill factor worse than expected. A practical chap, when the route passed near his home, he popped back for an extra layer and a cup of tea! Suitably warmed up he then got back on his bike and valiantly finished the event.
We waited at the finish to greet him and were pleased to see him looking great. Geoffrey revealed that he forgot the cold when cycling along the Thames as the sun came up - and he found himself singing. A quick massage courtesy of the organisers, a bacon sarnie and a cup of tea saw him fully restored.
We are all immensely proud of Geoffrey’s efforts and the fact that he was the event’s oldest participant! Geoffrey isn’t finished cycling and fundraising yet though - he also plans to cycle 100 miles in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 in August with Team Turn2us! You can find out more about Geoffrey’s cycling team, and help them meet their fundraising target, by visiting the Team Turn2us Virgin Money Giving page at http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/TeamTurn2us
Thank you Geoffrey, for your inspiring effort on behalf of Turn2us and our fight against UK poverty!
Simon Pearce
We are also celebrating Managing Director Simon Pearce, who travelled from Wolverhampton (not by bike!) to complete the 100K route that started and finished at Crystal Palace. Simon was doing Nightrider as part of his preparation of the 100 mile Prudential Ride London –Surrey 100 event later this summer.
Thanks to Simon for travelling down to take part in this fantastic event with us! We look forward to watching you cycle 100 miles in August. You can find out more about Simon on his Virgin Money Giving page: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Simon.Pearce4
Get active for Turn2us
If you’re as inspired by Geoffrey and Simon as we are, there are lots of upcoming opportunities to get involved in a fun challenge event with us. Please visit our Sporting Challenges page for further details.